The present invention relates to a hub joint and, more particularly, to a hub joint for transferring load from a rotating shaft to a stationary body.
Conventional hub joints for heavy applications usually have a forged metal or metal alloy housing. For example, conventional rotorcraft transmission housings are often made of aluminum. Metal housings can be very heavy, often weighing between about 100 pounds and about 500 pounds. Many products having hub joints would benefit from having a lighter hub joint. For example, because aircraft are sensitive to weight, there is a need to design lighter joints for use in aircraft.
Three primary methods for reducing assembly are to use different materials, change the amount of material used, or both. Such changes must be made within strength specification for the assembly. Changing materials is especially challenging because various materials often have significantly different characteristics and, thus, often require considerable configuration changes. For example, although aluminum is nearly isotropic (i.e., having substantially the same material properties in all directions), many other materials, such as many composite materials are less homogenous, having different properties in different directions. A hub joint is needed that is considerably lighter than traditional hub joints but does not compromise strength and stiffness.